MIDDLETOWN, Pa. — Caitlin Black and Kathryn Holmes, doctoral students in the American studies program in Penn State Harrisburg’s School of Humanities, have been recognized by the University for outstanding achievement. The awards were presented by Penn State President Eric Barron during the annual Graduate Student Awards Luncheon held April 25 at the Nittany Lion Inn.
Black was among 14 students who received the Penn State Alumni Association Dissertation Award and Distinguished Doctoral Scholar Medal in recognition of their “outstanding professional accomplishments and achievements in scholarly research in any of the disciplinary areas of arts and humanities; social sciences; physical and computational sciences; life and health sciences; and engineering.”
The award, considered to be among the most prestigious of the awards given to Penn State graduate students, provides funding to full-time research doctorate students who have passed their comprehensive examinations and have received approval of their dissertation topic.
Holmes was among 10 graduate students to receive the 2018 Harold F. Martin Graduate Assistant Outstanding Teaching Award. Award winners demonstrate a commitment to excellence, going above and beyond typical classroom instruction to shape the lives of their students. Their passion and dedication exemplify the impact Penn State’s graduate students have on society.
The award is jointly sponsored by the Graduate School, through the Harold F. Martin Graduate Assistant Outstanding Teaching Award endowment, and the Office of the Vice President and Dean for Undergraduate Education. The award is named for Harold F. Martin, who earned his doctoral degree in education in 1954, and retired as a director from the Pennsylvania Department of Education.
Holmes explained that her goal is to engage students “in research that exposes them to primary and secondary sources, while pushing them to apply course material in a way that is applicable to their individual lives and circumstances.”